SpecialEffect News

SpecialEffect News

Great to see our therapists going low-tech with Adil to make things happen. He's 21 and has Muscular Dystrophy, which has meant with time his muscles have
got progressively weaker. For the last two and a half years he’s been physically unable to use a games controller as it’s too big and heavy, and he
hasn’t been able to use the triggers or bumper buttons for over seven years.

“I miss gaming as it’s one of the very few ways I can play with my family and friends on an equal level,” he said.

So Frankie and Nomi invited him over to our games room to see if we could help.

They initially thought a lighter controller might be worth a try, so they connected up an Xbox 360 mini controller that they’d customised by swapping in
lighter joysticks and buttons. Adil liked it, but he wanted try an alternative for comparison.

"So we mounted an Xbox 360 by Adil’s chin and two button switches by each foot," said Frankie. "We found that Adil could use six small fingertip switches,
but the positioning of these in his lap was crucial. It turned out that a handy strip of cardboard was just the right size to get things exactly in
the right position!

Adil was soon piling into FIFA against his brother and taking on Assassins Creed.

‘Thanks for helping my older brother to get back in the game and giving me a chance to play (and lose!) against him!’ said Adil’s brother later on Instagram.

No problem. We’re so pleased to be able to help reignite Adil’s passion for games - and it looks like we’ll be keeping a sheet of cardboard in our kit
boxes from now on!